The Lighter Side of Layoffs

Hi there, it’s Yoolim Lee in Singapore. Indonesia’s version of Elon Musk runs a must-follow gossip site for the country’s tech watchers. But [View in browser]( [Bloomberg]( Hi there, it’s Yoolim Lee in Singapore. Indonesia’s version of Elon Musk runs a must-follow gossip site for the country’s tech watchers. But first... Today’s must-reads: • China [eases]( Covid curbs in a sharp policy shift • Microsoft and Nintendo [sign](a 10-year Call of Duty deal • Apple will [get US-made chips]( in the US for the first time in almost a decade Elon Murz is Watching Stuck at home during the pandemic, an e-commerce startup employee — who later took the pseudonym “Elon Murz” — got some friends together and created a meme account for fun. Two years later, the joke account has morphed into the go-to site for confidential tipoffs on tech startups in Indonesia. The identity of Murz — who now appears to go by [“Murz the Cat”](— remains a mystery. But after landing scoop after juicy scoop, the site has become essential reading for anyone following the fast-changing tech scene in the world’s fourth-most populous country. That has become doubly true as job cuts tear through the startup community, giving the word “townhall” ominous undertones. Now with 200,000 [Instagram followers](, Murz’s site hums with anonymous tips from tech employees about sudden townhall meetings and other information that only insiders would know. Murz offers [scathing criticism]( of [flighty business models]( like "K-Pop as a Service." Many young workers in Southeast Asia have never experienced such a downturn. For years, unprecedented growth looked unstoppable. Money poured in. Everything seemed possible. Now, as funding dries up amid surging prices and interest-rate hikes, rattled employees are turning to Murz, desperate for information. In Southeast Asia, where growth was sustained for so many years, managers are often bungling job reductions they say are necessary for survival. In August, a Chinese engineer posted his plight on his WeChat account after [Sea Ltd.](’s e-commerce arm Shopee canceled his job offer in Singapore after he landed at the airport with his wife and dog. After much publicity, Shopee apologized and compensated him for his losses, according to people familiar with the matter. Murz’s site is still new, and lacks the sophistication of [Blind](, an anonymous professional networking app that requires a work email to sign up. Born out of Korean workers’ desire to communicate anonymously across stifling workplace hierarchies in 2013, Blind catapulted to popularity in the wake of the so-called [“nut rage”]( scandal at Korean Air. That gave Blind the momentum to later expand to San Francisco where it has become a place for the tech community to discuss issues ranging from salary and work culture to cryptocurrencies. As Southeast Asia’s tech happenings gain global interest, Murz may also win a broader audience craving insights beyond public narratives dominated by self-promoting tech celebrities. I'm happy to see new platforms popping up to bring transparency to the ecosystem. In a region where top executives often blame the macroeconomic climate for “inevitable” retrenchments, [Carousell Pte]( Chief Executive Officer [Quek Siu Rui]( stood out for taking responsibility for a 10% slash to the online classified marketplace’s workforce. “I underestimated the impact of growing our team size too quickly,” he said last week. “I take responsibility for the decisions that have led us here.” Long after the downturn ends, prospective employees will remember which companies owned up to their mistakes and did right by their workers. Job cuts are expected to continue in Indonesia in 2023. It might serve companies well to remember that former, current and future employees are closely watching how people are let go. And that many of the details could come to light on Murz’s site for all the world to see. —[Yoolim Lee](mailto:yoolim@bloomberg.net) The big story Apple has scaled back ambitious self-driving plans for its future electric vehicle and[postponed](the car’s target launch date by about a year to 2026. The car project, dubbed Titan inside the company, has been in limbo due to technological hurdles. Get fully charged Amazon is running out of warehouse workers. It’s [looking to robots]( to store and retrieve millions of items. President Biden celebrated TSMC’s plan to spend $40 billion to build a second chip factory [in Arizona](. Adobe has eliminated about 100 jobs, mostly in sales. It joins many other tech companies [resorting to staff cuts]( to reduce expenses. Follow Us More from Bloomberg New from Bloomberg Businessweek: [Sign up for Bw Daily]( for unique perspectives and original reporting from the magazine’s renowned journalists, every weekday. 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